Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Colleen Coover comic book artist and illustrator based in Portland, OR with her husband, writer Paul Tobin. She is a member of Periscope Studio, a collective of more than twenty artists and writers who share a studio space in downtown Portland. Her comics include the adult title Small Favors and the all-ages Banana Sunday. While she is a an Indie comic maker she has started illustrating stories for marvel; for example X-Men: First Class, Pet Avengers stories and the new Girl Comics.

Doug Dorr: What projects are you working on currently?

I'm working on a new project with my husband Paul Tobin. So far, it's too early in the creative process to talk about, but we're probably going to be releasing it serially on line. And we have a graphic novel called Gingerbread Girl finished. That'll be published by Top Shelf when we can figure out the publishing schedule.

DD: What is your writing Process?

I typically do an outline, then build upon it, like raising a house. I'll often have a new idea to bring it all together about halfway through, or get stuck on something in the middle and go on to the end before I can resolve the sticky bit.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

It's been a long time since I've read it, but I love Hayao Miyazaki's Nausicaa. It's so rich in storytelling and scope, and the antagonists are deeply flawed characters, but not evil.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

If you can find them, the oversized black & white editions of EC Comic's Frontline Combat and Two-Fisted Tales. Great adventure and war stories by the greatest collection of comics artists of the 20th century. The black & white reproduction allows the art to really shine.

DD: When are story illustrator, how involved are you in the writing?

It depends on the writer I'm working with, and on the project. If I'm working with Paul, I can have an ongoing conversation with him as we work. With a writer I know well and have worked with in the past, like Jeff Parker, I feel free to ask questions and even suggest small changes to make the story better and more fun for both of us. But with writers I don't know well, I am less likely to suggest any writing changes, so the collaboration is more a matter of making my art tell their story-- not a subjugation of my art to their story, but more like an interpretation or adaptation of their script into comics form. I enjoy either process, as they involve different skills and challenges.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

I'd like to learn some foreign languages.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?

I don't collect much myself, but Paul collects comic and illustration art, and I own a few choice pieces myself. Probably my favorite piece is a Terry & The Pirates comic strip by Milton Caniff

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

Adventure and Romance.

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

Yes! I read ebooks on it voraciously.

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

I don't know if it's my favorite, but I love Hitchcock's Notorious with Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman.

DD: What was your first comic convention?

A tiny little show in Omaha back in '93 or '94. There wasn't much going on, but the hotel room we stayed in was twice the size of my studio apartment at the time, so I basked in the luxury.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

Seeing all my good friends in the comics community that live scattered around the country-- around the world, really.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

Illustration art, I guess, or try to write a novel or something.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

I've been to some pretty good restaurants around town, but really, you can't beat some of these food carts! I always know if I need a burrito the size of my head, or a really good banh mi sandwich, I can just walk down the street and pick one up for CHEAP. I usually only eat out for lunch, so the carts downtown near the studio tend to get my business.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

We moved here from Iowa six years ago. We were attracted to the change in climate, the public transit, the trees, and the comics community. I love it here.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?

The zoo is awesome.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

We don't have a car, so I haven't visited much outside of the city. Never been to the Gorge, only been to the coast twice, haven't been out into the desert areas. I really want to do more of that type of thing.

DD: Would you like to write for another media? or conversely, how would you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

I dunno about writing, but I think character design for video games might be fun. As for adapting into comics, I've been fantasizing about writing a script for a comic version of Jane Eyre, preferably to be drawn by someone else, but maybe I could do that, too. It's been done before, but I'd love to take a stab at it myself.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Artist Daniel Duford, who teaches sequential art at Pacific Northwest College of Art and whose work is included in the exhibition Comics at the Crossroads, will explore how images have a physical presence and how the output (newsprint pamphlet, computer screen, large scale mural etc) matters in the transmission of the image. Duford makes site-specific wall drawings, paintings, comics and sculpture to tell stories that meditate on myth in the American psyche. His work has been exhibited nationally, including at MASS MoCA, The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, The Atlanta Contemporary Art Center , Portland Institute for Contemporary Art and The Art Gym at Marylhurst University.

I was listening to interviews from Fanexpo Canada on csg. They had an interview with Graham Moogk-Soulis he discussed his web comic about what happens after they fairy tales. And the crazy characters that are left behind. I like his sense of humor.

Monday, September 27, 2010

I met Katy Ellis O'Brien at the Comic Workshop at Cosmic Monkey. Then we saw her amazing show Kilkenny Cats at the Sequential Art Gallery. She deftly uses animals to tell as her story telling stories. She is Editor of Stumptown Underground. Check out her painted story Fair Weather Friend from 2009.

Doug Dorr: What projects are you working on currently?

Katy Ellis O'Brien: Right now I'm working toward getting my painting series "The Kilkenny Cats" published as a graphic novel. Otherwise I've been doing small illustration projects lately, trying to "brush up" on my inking skills so that I can launch a major comics project within the next year.

DD: What is your writing Process?

When I'm trying to generate or develop ideas, I typically doodle in my sketchbook while listening to music. Character sketching is often the first step in my process, because once I've designed a cast of characters it's only a matter of time before a story forms around them. My ideas come from all the usual places - my subconscious, my life, things I've read. Once I've worked out a story in my head, I focus on a few key moments from the story and build my pages around them. I draw fairly detailed thumbnails before I start drafting the pages.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

"Asterios Polyp" by David Mazzucchelli is my newest favorite. I love comics that explore the possibilities of the medium, and I hope this book will be very influential in that regard. But aside from that, it's just a good story full of warmth, humor and sadness.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

It really depends on the person. There's a comic out there for everyone. But if I could get everyone in the world to read one comic, it would be "The Arrival" by Shaun Tan. It's a gorgeous silent comic that anyone can enjoy, and it has a beautiful message.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

Right now I'm practicing my skill at inking with a brush. The more you do it the more you realize how much practice it takes to get really good!

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?

I don't collect anything right now, but I dream of one day becoming an art collector. One of my most prized possessions is a little drawing given to me by Craig Thompson that I keep in a frame on my desk.

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

Silent comics! Does that count as a genre? Otherwise, I like a little bit of everything - autobio, history, humor, science fiction, fantasy, even some superhero stuff. But I have a special love for comics that don't really adhere to a genre. Jim Woodring, for example, seems like a genre unto himself...

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

Nope, I've never even laid eyes on one! But if I had one I would probably use it for reading webcomics. Predictable...

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

TV show - Star Trek The Next Generation! Nothing can ever top that. Movie - The Secret of NIMH. I guess my tastes haven't changed much since I was 7...

DD: What was your first comic convention?

Olympia Comics Festival '05! Joe Sacco was there, I recall.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

The feeling of inspiration I'm left with after a weekend spent discovering new comics and meeting enthusiastic readers and creators. It's a great motivator.

I don't have my own kids, but I work with kids and many of them love "Bone" by Jeff Smith, which shows impeccable taste. Thorn from "Bone" is one of my favorite characters ever, in part because she's a smart, brave princess who doesn't need a prince to save her.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

I love art history and I've thought about doing something with that, but I'd never give up drawing for anything. I simply can't imagine life without it.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

Well, I'm a vegetarian and kind of a health food weirdo, so I love Blossoming Lotus on 15th & Broadway, but it's definitely a special occasions kind of place. I miss their casual downtown location.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

I've lived here for a little over 2 years, but I grew up in Forest Grove, a rural town 20 miles west of Portland. When I was a kid, Portland seemed hip and happening, and that's only become more true since then. Moving here after college was inevitable - the awesome art scene just sweetened the deal.

What is your favorite part of Portland?

Try as I might I can't narrow it down to just one thing, except for "the people" which seems like a cop-out. They really are amazing, though! It's a cliche that everyone in Portland is either an artist or
a musician, but it's really true, and I like it that way. I don't think of it as competition - it's community.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

I feel like I've been everywhere in Oregon by now, but I'm sure I'm wrong... there are many places I want to visit again and again, like the Umpqua River Valley and Crater Lake. I love hanging out in nature but I seldom escape the city because I don't drive a car.

DD: Would you like to write for another media? or conversely, how would you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

I have a very visual imagination, of course, so I doubt I will ever write a novel. I could definitely see myself writing a screenplay, though. And I think it would be fun to work with characters from other media. My comic about James Bond would explore his humdrum life between secret missions - doing his taxes, ironing his suits, going to the dentist. It would be really boring.

We all watched sharktopus. We did it in fast forward mode. Anytime there wasn't a sharktopus attack we fast forwarded. No Blah - Blah I was told by the boys.

Mini Reviews:
Gannon
The acting was horrible. But the Sharktopus attacks were great.

Livy:

"Yeah, Yeah lets get out of here" That is what you say when you smell a fart in the mall.

Who ever came up with this should be shot

I show more emotion when I am taking a nap

Who goes hunting Sharktopus in flip-flops

Estimation of what happened. The entire movie was filmed with no one knowing what it was about. Just words on page. Read this script guess what you are reacting to; is it comedy, horror, drama you don't know. That's how the magic happens.

As soon as it was over the boys were done. They went into the lego room, created their own sharktopus and started their own sharktopus movies.

Saturday, September 25, 2010

I first picked up Proof at Excalibur Comic. Mainly because there was Chupacabra in it. My boys were watching "Scooby Doo" in Acapulco repeatedly. The villain is a Chupacabra. Soon the boy's main enemy was the Chupacabra. Don't worry soon the switched their main enemy to Weeping Angels. But,I digress, I loved the story and it gave me a X-files feel where Mulder was Bigfoot. All sorts of supernatural creatures, a organization to investigate them and great art.

Media Release -- Sasquatch John "Proof" Prufrock has always wondered about where he came from. He will get some answers this December with the release of PROOF: ENDANGERED #1. Proof may also find himself in the greatest danger of his life!

"Proof" Prufrock is on the run, hunted by the government he once worked for. He has information that, after 200 years, may finally tell him who he is and where he came from, but he has to turn for help to a teenager who claims to own Proof's body! This is where the series begins all over again!

Friday, September 24, 2010

The last time I was at Stumptown I almost bought the above print by Ron Chan. He is a fantastic illustrator and colorist. He was born and raised in Portland, OR and works as a freelance Comics Artist, Storyboarder, and Illustrator. He also works as a Story boarder for commercial clients. He graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2005, and he is a member of the Periscope Studio. He colored Underground by Parker and Lieber and worked at Dark Horse, Marvel, Virgin, and Viper Comics and was on a super secret mission for Microsoft.

Doug Dorr: What projects are you working on currently?

Ron Chan: I've been bouncing back and forth between a lot of different commercial storyboarding gigs, and I've just launched a webcomic with my best friend called Roy's Boys. It's at www.roysboyscomic.com

DD: What is your Artistic Process?

My process is highly digital. I do almost all of my drawing in Photoshop, using a 12" Wacom Cintiq. For storyboarding and commercial work, I work 100% digital. For comics work, I'll usually draw in Photoshop, but then print it out to ink traditionally with brush and ink on bristol board.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

I would recommend one that's not even out yet, but will be soon. Everybody should pick up Emitown, by Emi Lenox, when Image releases the book soon. October, I think. Brilliant autobio.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

One of my all time favorites is Tommysaurus Rex, by Doug TenNapel. It's a super fast read with lots of heart, and energetic drawing.

DD: When are story illustrator, how involved are you in the writing?

Typically, not involved at all. I read a script, and I try to find the best way to tell the story. Most of the time, I wouldn't really consider myself a maker of stories, but a teller of stories.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

I'd love to be able to increase efficiency in my drawing. Not necessarily efficiency as in pages per hour, but visual efficiency; the ability to use less visual information to show more.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?

I have a modest couple bookshelves of books, but I wouldn't call myself a collector. I enjoy reading and owning them, but I don't prize any of them.

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

Not really any in particular. What I read is usually based on a friend's recommendation.

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

I wish I had an ipad. I've considered getting one, but at this point, I figure I might as well wait for the second generation.

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

Too many to choose from, so I'll just say what I'm digging right now. Favorite TV show of the moment is Dexter, and favorite movie I've seen recently is Inception.

DD: What was your first comic convention?

The big one. I went to SDCC while I was still in college, learning about comics, and it was my first con.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

My favorite part of conventions is definitely running into and catching up with other comics folks that I don't see otherwise.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

Right now, I'm balancing comics work with storyboarding work, but if I didn't have comics, I'd surely be focusing on storyboarding full time.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

There's a great place on SE 41st and Division called Sckavone's. Try the meatloaf.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

I was actually born and raised in Portland, although I spent 4 years living in Georgia, when I attended the Savannah College of Art and Design. After college, it made sense to continue living in Portland, because I love the city, and it just so happened that my home town is great for comics.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?

I love the size and culture of Portland. It has a lot of the conveniences of a larger city, but still feels like a smallish town.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

Even though it's not far outside of Portland, it's been years since I've gotten over to the coast.

DD: Would you like to write for another media? or conversely, how would

you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media,

for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

I'm not much of a writer, but I'd surely have fun drawing such a thing.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Blacksad by Juan Díaz Canales is a luxurious english translation of a french comic that was just released by Dark Horse. This book is the first three Blacksad stories combined into a hardcover. The story is an engaging noir mystery set in the 50's. The artwork is stunning; the coloring, composition and detail are all breathtaking. And the book is filled with both dynamic action and quiet moody scenes. The anthromorphic figures are are chosen carefully to be the animal they need to be, the deer school teacher, the jazz orangutan, the pig bar tender, black horse gang member. The chosen animals give these characters more depth with just an image. This is a must read.

Pluto Books 1-8 by Urasawa x Tezuka This is a Mystery as well. It is a Manga, based off the Astroboy story arc, Greatest Robot on Earth. I haven't read Astroboy and generally don't read Manga. But I loved this. One of the most advanced robots in the world is murdered for no apparent reason. A conspiracy evolves and a detective is sent to investigate it before it is too late. This story is about what really means to be human, friendship, family, and the nature of war.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

In June I went to the HomeTown Hero exhibit in Milwaukee. It had a huge exhibit of Mike Richardson's personal art collection. Just amazing sculptures, images and Comic pages from throughout Darkhorse history.

This is from Christopher J Stephens and was recently reposted on Bleeding cool.

Dark Horse Comics announced:
Darkhorse, NW32, Things From Another World (TFAW.com), and FUNimation Entertainment have combined forces to bring the city of Portland a deliciously deviant Halloween celebration -- the Blood and Guts Bash --

Bagdad Theater
3702 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd.
Portland, OR 97214
October 29 from 9 p.m. until midnight Admission is free to the public, and this is a 21-and-older event.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

The Comics at the Opera occurred on the 20th. The official images are not up yet but they are up on the artists sites: Ron Chan, Colleen Coover, Erica Moen, Natalie Nourigat posted some of there images. Get their impressions of this amazing opera Pagliacci.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Brian Chippendale know for his fast-paced, frantic drumming for Lightning Bolt has announced a new project If 'n Oof set for release November 1. He announce a signing at Floating World Comics.

From Picturebox: If 'n' Oof focuses on the misadventures of the mismatched eponymous duo Chippendale's very own Laurel and Hardy. Chippendale allows the two to explore his landscapes and alien beings. Comedy, horror, and out-and-out adventure in a story-driven, manga-style adventure, replete with the frenetic linework and concise, witty dialogue for which he has become known.

This was a lot of fun. It was super low key. Easy parking, not crowded. The boys and I went down on Sunday to play some video games. There was an extensive free arcade set. We got to play some upright and table video consoles. The boys both got to play Pac-Man for the first time. Their favorite was Duck Hunt for, I think, the Commodore. I got to play the 80's Tron game, it was a lot of fun. I remember it being impossible. We all got to play Galaga, which was our main goal. There was even time to play Dig-Dug. The guys from GameTraders in Beaverton were there with their super cool Street Fighter game that we also got to play on the last free comic book day.

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Emi Lenox writes a sketch diary called EmiTown. This was just picked up to be printed as a 400 page collection by Image. Her engaging art style and design takes us through her trials and tribulations of life. Lenox has had internships a Periscope Studios and Top Shelf. She is currently working with several publishers, Oni, Vertigo and Top Shelf on different projects.

Doug Dorr: What projects are you working on currently?

Emi Lenox: I will hopefully, always be working on EmiTown, a sketch diary comic that can be found online at www.emitown.comand soon in print through Image comics scheduled to be released next month.

I am also working on a few independent comics that I’m hoping to pitch to some publishers!

DD: What is your writing Process?

For EmiTown specifically, I keep notes of the interesting things that happen that day. Otherwise, I sort of draw my way through.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

Something maybe not everyone has checked out would be That Salty Air by Tim Sievert. I love that book.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

It would depend on what genre they are most interested in. I have recommended people to Asterios Polyp, Chris Ware’s Acme Novelty Library, and Paul Hornschemier’s Mother Come Home.

DD: When you are story illustrator, how involved are you in the writing?

I have not experienced being isolated as an artist on a project yet. I mainly do both.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

To fly a Blue Angel jet.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're most proud of?

My Process Recess 2 by James Jean, First print of Bone by Jeff Smith, all my Chris Ware comics.

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

Slice of Life, Autobiographical.

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

I do not have an Ipad. I don’t even have an Iphone. I do have an old Ipod however which I use everyday.

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE DEXTER. I also love Friday Night Lights and How I Met Your Mother. Movie-wise I would have to say I love Amelie, the Hangover, and chick flicks and movies where there are a lot of butt kicking.

DD: What was your first comic convention?

First attended would be San Diego Comic Con 2004. First tabled at would be Emerald City Comic Con 2010.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

The COMICS and reuniting with friends in the industry that I only see during cons.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

I have no idea. Flying Blue Angels in air shows?

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

I don’t actually. I rarely eat out. I truly am a poor artist.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

I grew up in the suburbs of Portland so this is basically home base. I did move away to San Francisco for a year and a half and ended up missing Portland terribly. I truly feel I belong here.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?

The close proximity it is to the beach, rivers, mountains, and county. Everything is nearby and the city itself is a comic heaven.

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

The Wild Life Animal Park.

DD: Would you like to write for another media? or conversely, how wouldyou feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

I would be interested in exploring as long as it’s a character/media that I am interested in!

The H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival promotes the works of H.P. Lovecraft, literary horror, and weird tales through the cinematic adaptations by professional and amateur filmmakers. The festival was founded in 1995 by Andrew Migliore in the hope that H.P. Lovecraft would be rightly recognized as a master of gothic horror and his work more faithfully adapted to film and television. Tickets are online from http://boxofficetickets.com/

24 hour comics day is coming up this October. BOOM! Studios is a new sponsor. I heard some local artists will be participating. I did not see a local event yet posted but the results will be posted at http://www.24hourcomicsday.com/

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Friday, September 17, 2010

This is possibly the best thing I have seen for awhile. On Total Sci-Fi they mentioned the London Bridge Experience. Where you wander around the catacombs under London Bridge and blast Zombies with semi Automatic - Nerf Blasters. A kid in my neighborhood modified a nerf blaster into a sawed off shotgun. Could bring our own Nerf Blasters?

Zombie actors come leaping out of the dark at you. It is a haunted house where you have a fighting chance. This type of think seems like a Portland Experience. I think the zombie bar has been raised.

At the end team who dispatched the most zombies with the most ammo to spare wins a prize.

More than 20 comic book artist are invited to see the show Paglaicci. They will have a backstage tour and set in the front row. After the show you can see their impressions at the theater or at www.portlandopera.org.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Well as you know we are always planning ahead for the eventual zombie plague. But, we may have a more immediate danger from the skynet and their robots armies. According to the below images, we are headed the wrong way on preventing robotic doom.

From by Rich Johnston

From the Drudge Report. With, um, a few additions.
Thanks to Joe Szilagyi for the original screencap.

Monday, September 13, 2010

Join Patrick Rosenkranz, the country's pre-eminent chronicler of underground comics, in this new class on the history of comics. You will explore how these comics have an explosive and unappreciated impact on our culture. This course will explore the evolution of many comic themes and conventions, including genre, social mores, gender issues, cultural revolution, racial identity, propaganda and satire.

Prerequisite(s): none Instructor: Patrick Rosenkranz
Bio: Patrick Rosenkranz one of the premier scholars of the underground comix movement of the 1960s and 1970s, has been writing about comix since 1969. He wrote his first history of underground comix, Artsy Fartsy Funnies in 1974, and co-produced Underground Comix Radiozine in the 1980s for KBOO-FM. He has written numerous articles and essays about comix for a variety of publications.

Since this is the Portland Comics blog about the fantastic Portland comics community, I felt I should to put together a questionnaire/Interview with a local artists.

Jeff Parker, originally from North Carolina, is currently working on Agents of Atlas, Thunder Bolts, and The Hulk for Marvel. I think I encountered Jeff Parker when I read his fantastic Mysterious the Unfathomable and Agents of Atlas. I loved both for different reasons; Mysterious for being a crazy story about a crazy magician, and I loved Agents of Atlas for bringing together these golden-age characters from the 50's, revive them, and putting them into an engaging action adventure. Both had beautiful art and great characters. Both were unusual and eclectic.

Jeff currently lives in Portland and is a member of Periscope Studio. He released Underground with Steve Lieber, also of Periscope Studio. He has also written for Marvel, DC, Virgin, Image and Malibu. He worked for DC on the the impossible to find series Big Book of.., Weirdos, the 70's, The Unexplained, etc. Remember I told you to read Agents of Atlas.

DD: What projects are you working on currently?

JP: I am writing HULK, THUNDERBOLTS and just finishing ATLAS all for Marvel.

DD: What is your writing Process?

It begins and ends with coffee, preferably Stumptown coffee in iced Americano form. I usually start the day at my nearby cafe, work there a couple of hours, and then bike downtown to Periscope studio and work at my desk behind cartoonist Colleen Coover. That may not sound insightful, but actually breaking up the work into different places helps me- while riding my bike I often solve story points that I'm stuck on and then when I get my computer back out, I'm ready to transcribe what happened in my head. I don't think I would do as well if I woke up and just walked into another room in my house to write.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend?

That's hard, because I like to tailor my recommendations to the reader. But at the moment I would happily push THOR THE MIGHTY AVENGER by Roger Langridge and Chris Samnee on anyone.

DD: What Comic/ Trade would you recommend to someone new to comics?

That CAPTAIN EASY collection that just came out would captivate a lot of people I think.

DD: Do you draw? How involved are you in the illustration of your stories?

I do, and I just drew a scene in the final issue of ATLAS. I sometimes rough out a panel here and there for the artist I'm working with if it's hard to describe. Because many times I'm calling for something simple to depict but spelling it out makes it sounds very complex. I often do cover roughs too, largely to save the artists time from having to work up multiple sketches when only one will be picked.

DD: What skill would you like to learn?

Every few years I noodle with guitar and then decide I don't have the time to put into it and I never get very good. I hope to eventually break through that.

DD: Do you have a collection? If so, what is one of the items you're

most proud of?

I have some original art, and thanks to Jim Ottaviani paying me from his collection on a project, I have a Caniff/Sickles Terry and the Pirates and a Roy Crane Captain Easy strip. I also have some stunning Gabriel Hardman art from Atlas.

DD: What is your favorite genre of Comics?

I lean towards adventure. But that's hard, I can be all gung ho for sci-fi one week, and crime the next.

DD: Do you have an Ipad? If so what do use it for the most.

Not so far!

DD: What is your favorite TV show/ movie?

I will always plop down in front of the orginal KING KONG.

DD: What was your first comic convention?

It was an ACME Con in Greensboro, NC in the 80's.

DD: What is your favorite part of comic conventions?

Signing tall stacks of everything I've written- just kidding. I like doing sketches for little kids.

My kids are liking most of the children's line BOOM is putting out now, like Toy Story and the duck books, Muppet Show. My favorite is probably still Popeye, who was my first favorite. If you get those Fantagraphics collections of Segar's original Popeye strips, you'll see that they're still terrific.

DD: If you weren’t doing comics what would you do?

I would write something else, all story telling appeals to me. Screenplays probably.

DD: Do you have a favorite restaurant that you would recommend?

Being originally from the south, I like Pine State Biscuits a lot, and Hillybilly Bento downtown on SW 6th.

DD: How long have you lived in Portland, what made you choose Portland?

I've lived here since 2003- I worked in Los Angeles storyboarding cartoons and commercials for a while and I would come up to visit. Portland was the opposite of L.A. in almost every way, I loved it. And then when my daughter was born, I dragged my family here because I knew it was a great place for kids. I like that I can ride my bike everywhere, and I just bought a boat so now I can putter around on the Columbia and Willamette a lot too.

DD: What is your favorite part of Portland?

I love the Hollywood area where I live, but I also am really fond of Sellwood, where I first lived here. There's so many great things to walk to there, the river, Oaks Bottom Park...

DD: Where in Portland/ Oregon would you most like to visit?

I have still not seen the Shanghai Tunnels! And for greater Oregon, there's so much I've still not seen because my kids are not big on long car trips. Like I still haven't been to Crater Lake, which is heresy.

DD: Would you like to write for another media? or conversely, how would you feel about writing a comic of a character from a different media, for example, Dr. Who, James Bond? What would you explore?

Actually either or both of those would be great, as I've enjoyed both series. I mentioned screenplays before, and that's because I've had lots of things I wanted to write that would work better in 'real time' rather than frozen moments the way a comic works. Perhaps Dr. Who could come back in time and help James Bond stop something enormous!

For the next ten days -- thru Friday Sept 24th -- Top Shelf is having a giant $3 graphic novel web sale. Over 100 graphic novels & comics on sale -- with over 70 titles slashed to just $3 & $1!
To go directly to the list of sale items, just click here: TOP SHELF SALE!
**And we accept PayPal, Visa, MasterCard, Amex, & Discover (all secure).**
And retailers, this sale is GOOD for y'all too! Certain minimums apply, so email Robert Venditti rob@topshelfcomix.com or Chris Staros chris@topshelfcomix.com for details.

Thursday, September 09, 2010

Pick up Mighty Thor. It is a fantastic new series. You don't need to know anything about Thor or other Marvel drama. It is just a well written story with beautiful art. It is drawn by Portland's own Chris Samnee, one of the nicest guys around.

Thursday, September 02, 2010

Stumptown comic fest has been announced. With changes. First Indigo is back and he has some BIG plans. And we are back at the Convention Center, but now we have 30,000 square feet of space. This year sounds great. As we get closer will have more detail about the Comic fest.